Helping Patients Before They Get Sick

When Jeremiah’s diagnosis of ulcerative colitis put him at risk of a cascade of dangerous conditions, McFarland Clinic Care Coordinator Linda Hoff, RN reached out to him. She asked him how he was feeling and whether he might want to try to improve his health.

“There are not very many 295-pounders that are going to tell you ‘I feel awesome,’” Jeremiah says. “I’ve always had nutrition problems. I didn’t feel good, I didn’t look good. I wasn’t as good of a dad or husband. I couldn’t go out and play with my kids for long periods of time because I’d get worn out.”

Linda asked him what his goal would be. He wanted to lose weight. So together, he and Linda created a plan to eat more nutritiously and exercise regularly. With Linda’s encouragement, he has lost more than 100 pounds and feels much better. Both he and his family are happy.

“This is a service that I have with Linda that I’ve never had anywhere else and, at first, I was very, very skeptical,” he says. “But she’s part of this with me. She really is.”

McFarland’s multispecialty practice carries profound benefits for physicians and patients. To have specialists in-house follows the model of care that is very helpful to patients and satisfying to physicians. ~ Dr. Ken Talbert, Medical Director and retired ophthalmologist, Ames, Iowa

Linda says the hope for the Population Health program is that a patient’s success acts as a ripple effect within their families and communities. Today, Jeremiah says he tells everyone what he has learned: “If you make it a priority to work on your health, then you’ll do well.”

Food is Medicine

Diagnosing and treating health conditions with tried-and-true approaches is an important part of medical care. Collaborating on innovative, new science-based approaches to enhance our patients’ health is also critical. Two of our physicians working on nutrition education is a great example.

I would much prefer a discussion with a patient about a new recipe or a healthy nutrition plan they have made rather than discussing which new medication we should add on for management of diabetes. ~ Dr. Michael Bird, Family Medicine

Food is Medicine is the brainchild of family medicine physician Dr. Michael Bird and nephrologist Dr. Jacob Alexander. The two physicians worked together to create a guide – available online and in print for physicians and patients – that helps patients with a great range of health conditions, from diabetes to high blood pressure and atherosclerosis. It also helps prevent many diseases.

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